


No Man Left Behind

by propheticfire



Series: Scenes From Fics I Will Never Write [4]
Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Fix-it fic, Gen, Nobody Dies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-03
Updated: 2017-11-03
Packaged: 2019-01-28 19:23:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12613684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/propheticfire/pseuds/propheticfire
Summary: Fives, Jesse, and Hardcase fly the Umbaran fighters deep into the hangar of the orbiting supply ship. They went in together, and they'll come out together, or not at all.





	No Man Left Behind

“Can’t turn back now! Cover me!”

“Hardcase, get back in your ship!”

“Trust me, I got a plan!”

Fives watched in horror as Hardcase vaulted over the wing of his fighter and grabbed the energy nacell he’d just disconnected. He gave it a shove and guided it beyond Fives’ field of vision. This wasn’t happening. Wasn’t happening. What was Hardcase doing?

“This is for the Five Hundred and First! Don’t wait for me!”

“Hardcase, no!”

“You’ve disobeyed enough orders today, sir. Follow this one: get outta here!”

Fives returned his focus to the droids in front of him. The shields on the Umbaran fighter were strong, but even they couldn’t hold up indefinitely against this barrage. He could see the shield strength indicator dropping lower and lower. This wasn’t happening. This was his idea. There was no way he was going to lose a man on this mission. But Hardcase had already disappeared behind the ray shield.

“Hardcase, get back here!” Fives tried again. He could feel his breathing quicken, feel the sweat beading on his forehead and palms. This was senseless. Needless. They’d find another way. He was _not_ going to lose another brother. This was his idea. His fault. This wouldn’t happen, _couldn’t_ happen. He’d barely known Hardcase very long, but the feeling of _kindred spirit_ was too strong to ignore. There had to be another way.

“Hardcase.” Jesse’s voice over the comm, quiet, soothing in a way, and yet insistent. “We’re not leaving. I won’t leave you. Come back. Come back now.”

Fives’ mind was racing. Hardcase would listen to Jesse. He had to listen to Jesse. Please let him listen to Jesse.

A sudden explosion rocked Fives sideways. One of the droids had got a lucky shot off at Hardcase’s empty ship. It burst into sparks of orange and green and blue. Fives righted his ship as the shock wave dissipated. Even more shield strength gone. They’d all be lost if they didn’t get out of here soon.

“Hardcase, we don’t have time to argue,” Jesse continued. “You get back here and you get in the ship and we’re getting out of here, or none of us are.”

Ship’s gone, Fives thought. Nothing for Hardcase to come back to. Unless…

“Jesse! Move your fighter in front of mine! Lay down as much cover fire as you can!” Fives was already angling the cockpit of his fighter at the place where Hardcase had disappeared as Jesse moved his fighter into position. “Hardcase, throw the nacell, do whatever it is you have planned to do, then haul ass back here and get in with me!”

There was a pause, seconds long, achingly too long. And then came Hardcase’s voice.

“Yessir!”

For what felt like hours, Fives waited, eyes fixed on the little alcove where Hardcase had gone. The zap of droid blasters and Jesse’s answering volley of fire sounded far away. This was going to work. Was going to work. Had to work. He just had to wait for Hardcase to––

There! There he was! Fives disengaged the shield around the cockpit of his fighter and Hardcase bolted toward him. Blaster bolts whizzed past them, but the bulk of the fighter blocked enough of the barrage. Hardcase clambered up the side of the fighter and tucked himself in behind Fives’ chair. His eyes were wild as he wrapped his arms around the chair and Fives’ shoulders.

“Go, go, go or we’ll never make it!” Hardcase was screaming as Fives re-engaged the shield and brought the fighter around. A low rumble reached Fives’ ears, a distant _boom_ reverberating through the ship. Now or never.

“Go, go, go!” Fives ordered. Jesse’s fighter shot away in font of him, mowing down droids as it flew past. Fives followed. A _whoosh_ of air pushed the ships forward, but a wall of fire chased after them, gaining ground with each passing millisecond. The fighter vibrated under Fives’ feet with the strain.

“Come on, come on!” Jesse’s voice urged.

“Come on!” Hardcase echoed, clinging to Fives’ shoulders for dear life.

They were so close. The entrance to the supply ship’s hangar was right in front of them. They just had to push it a little further, a little further…

Fire engulfed the cockpit of Fives’ fighter. For a split second there was nothing but angry red and orange and white light and a deafening roar as the ship trembled, and then––

Blackness. Stillness. Quiet.

And the sound of Hardcase’s breathing in his ear.

And streaks of green and dull shapes appearing, and as his HUD adjusted back to normal lighting, the sight of space battle. And the feel of his fighter flying swiftly and surely out into the open expanse of sky.

And a loud “Woooooohooooo!” over the comm, as Jesse laughed out his relief.

Fives let out a deep, shaking breath. They’d done it. They’d actually done it. His idea worked. And he hadn’t lost a man. Hardcase was crazy. But it was the kind of crazy Fives would like to have around for a long time to come.

Navigating back through the space battle into the murk of Umbara’s atmosphere was a piece of cake after that.


End file.
